BIG weekend for matric exam candidates
The 2026 National Senior Certificate (NSC) final examinations are fast approaching, with matric learners across South Africa set to begin their final exams next week.
According to the official timetable released by the Department of Basic Education (DBE), the 2026 NSC exams will start on Tuesday, 13 October and run until Thursday, 26 November.
The timetable applies to public schools writing the NSC examinations.
That makes this coming weekend the final chance for candidates to get their noses into their text books.
And here’s some hopefully helpful news. The South African suggests all matriculants go back and stuff past papers. Links to those papers from earlier in the year – as well as 2025 – can be found by clicking HERE.
A total of 1 079 879 candidates will sit for the General Education and Training Certificate: Adult Basic Education and Training (GETC: ABET), National Certificate (Vocational) [NC(V)] Level 4 and National Senior Certificate (NSC) examinations.
What time do matric exams start?
The DBE timetable has two standard examination sessions.
Morning papers begin at 09:00, while afternoon papers start at 14:00.
Matric learners are advised to arrive at their examination venues well before the scheduled starting time.
Being late can add unnecessary stress to an already demanding examination period, so learners should plan their travel and arrival times in advance.
With the final examinations approaching, learners are encouraged to use the remaining time to revise, prepare their examination materials and familiarise themselves with the official timetable.
Week 1: 13 to 17 October
The first week opens with CAT and IT practicals, followed by language papers. English Paper 3 – the writing and composition paper – falls on Thursday 15 October, which is earlier than many students expect.
| Date | Time | Subject |
|---|---|---|
| Tuesday, 13 October | 09:00 | Computer Applications Technology P1 Practical (3 hrs) |
| Tuesday 13 October | 14:00 | Hindi / Gujarati / Tamil / Telugu / Urdu HL P1 (2 hrs), FAL P1 (2 hrs), SAL P1 (2 hrs); Hebrew SAL P1 (2 hrs); German HL / FAL / SAL P1 (2 hrs) |
| Wednesday 14 October | 09:00 | Information Technology P1 Practical (3 hrs) |
| Wednesday 14 October | 14:00 | Arabic / French / Italian / Mandarin / Modern Greek / Serbian / Spanish SAL P1 (2 hrs); Latin SAL P1 (3 hrs); Portuguese HL / FAL / SAL P1 (2 hrs) |
| Thursday 15 October | 09:00 | English HL P3 (3 hrs); English FAL P3 (2½ hrs); English SAL P3 (2½ hrs) |
| Thursday 15 October | 14:00 | Hindi / Gujarati / Tamil / Telugu / Urdu HL P2 (2½ hrs), FAL P2 (2 hrs), SAL P2 (2 hrs); Hebrew SAL P2 (2 hrs); German HL P2 (2½ hrs), FAL P2 (2 hrs), SAL P2 (2 hrs) |
| Friday 16 October | 09:00 | Economics P1 (2 hrs); Mechanical Technology (3 hrs) |
| Friday 16 October | 14:00 | Design P1 (3 hrs) |
Week 2: 19 to 23 October
Week two carries most of the major home language papers alongside Accounting and Mathematics Paper 1. Friday 23 October is the busiest single morning of the exam season for most students.
| Date | Time | Subject |
|---|---|---|
| Monday 19 October | 09:00 | isiZulu / isiXhosa / siSwati / isiNdebele HL P3 (3 hrs), FAL P3 (2½ hrs), SAL P3 (2½ hrs) |
| Monday 19 October | 14:00 | Agricultural Sciences P1 (2½ hrs) |
| Tuesday 20 October | 09:00 | Afrikaans HL P3 (3 hrs); Afrikaans FAL P3 (2½ hrs); Afrikaans SAL P3 (2½ hrs) |
| Tuesday 20 October | 14:00 | History P1 (3 hrs); Maritime Economics (3 hrs) |
| Wednesday 21 October | 09:00 | Sepedi / Sesotho / Setswana / Xitsonga / Tshivenda HL P3 (3 hrs), FAL P3 (2½ hrs), SAL P3 (2½ hrs); South African Sign Language HL P3 (3 hrs) |
| Wednesday 21 October | 14:00 | Information Technology P2 Theory (3 hrs) |
| Thursday 22 October | 09:00 | Accounting P1 (2 hrs) |
| Thursday 22 October | 14:00 | Engineering Graphics and Design P1 (3 hrs); Marine Sciences P1 (2½ hrs) |
| Friday 23 October | 09:00 | Mathematics P1 (3 hrs); Mathematical Literacy P1 (3 hrs); Technical Mathematics P1 (3 hrs) |
| Friday 23 October | 14:00 | Hindi / Gujarati / Tamil / Telugu / Urdu HL P3 (2½ hrs), FAL P3 (2½ hrs); Portuguese / German HL P3 (2½ hrs); Portuguese / German FAL P3 (2½ hrs) |
Week 3: 26 to 30 October
Mathematics Paper 2 opens this week on Monday – just one weekend after Paper 1. Physical Sciences follows at the end of the week, with Physics on Friday 30 October and Chemistry the following Monday.
| Date | Time | Subject |
|---|---|---|
| Monday 26 October | 09:00 | Mathematics P2 (3 hrs); Mathematical Literacy P2 (3 hrs); Technical Mathematics P2 (3 hrs) |
| Monday 26 October | 14:00 | Sport and Exercise Science (3 hrs) |
| Tuesday 27 October | 09:00 | Sepedi / Sesotho / Setswana / Xitsonga / Tshivenda HL P1 (2 hrs), FAL P1 (2 hrs), SAL P1 (2 hrs); South African Sign Language HL P1 (2 hrs) |
| Tuesday 27 October | 14:00 | Engineering Graphics and Design P2 (3 hrs) |
| Wednesday 28 October | 09:00 | English HL P1 (2 hrs); English FAL P1 (2 hrs); English SAL P1 (2 hrs) |
| Wednesday 28 October | 14:00 | Accounting P2 (2 hrs) |
| Thursday 29 October | 09:00 | Geography P1 – Climate and Weather, Geomorphology and Map Work (3 hrs) |
| Thursday 29 October | 14:00 | Computer Applications Technology P2 Theory (3 hrs) |
| Friday 30 October | 09:00 | Physical Sciences P1 – Physics (3 hrs); Technical Sciences P1 (3 hrs) |
| Friday 30 October | 14:00 | Tourism (3 hrs) |
Week 4: 2 November
Physical Sciences Paper 2 (Chemistry) opens the week on Monday, then the timetable breaks for four days. It’s breathing room – use it for Life Sciences and Business Studies revision.
| Date | Time | Subject |
|---|---|---|
| Monday 2 November | 09:00 | Physical Sciences P2 – Chemistry (3 hrs); Technical Sciences P2 (1½ hrs) |
| Monday 2 November | 14:00 | Religion Studies P1 (2 hrs) |
| Tuesday 3 November | — | No exams |
| Wednesday 4 November | — | No exams |
| Thursday 5 November | — | No exams |
| Friday 6 November | 09:00 | isiZulu / isiXhosa / siSwati / isiNdebele HL P1 (2 hrs), FAL P1 (2 hrs), SAL P1 (2 hrs) |
| Friday 6 November | 14:00 | Consumer Studies (3 hrs); Hospitality Studies (3 hrs) |
Week 5: 9 to 13 November
Life Sciences Paper 1 closes out this week on Friday. Monday has no exams, so you have the weekend and Monday to prepare for a busy week of home language papers and Business Studies.
| Date | Time | Subject |
|---|---|---|
| Monday 9 November | — | No exams |
| Tuesday 10 November | 09:00 | isiZulu / isiXhosa / siSwati / isiNdebele HL P2 (2½ hrs), FAL P2 (2½ hrs), SAL P2 (1½ hrs) |
| Tuesday 10 November | 14:00 | Electrical Technology (3 hrs); Nautical Science P1 (3 hrs) |
| Wednesday 11 November | 09:00 | Afrikaans HL P1 (2 hrs); Afrikaans FAL P1 (2 hrs); Afrikaans SAL P1 (2 hrs) |
| Wednesday 11 November | 14:00 | Business Studies P1 (2 hrs) |
| Thursday 12 November | 09:00 | Geography P2 – Rural and Urban Settlements, Economic Geography of SA and Map Work (3 hrs) |
| Thursday 12 November | 14:00 | Religion Studies P2 (2 hrs) |
| Friday 13 November | 09:00 | Life Sciences P1 (2½ hrs) |
| Friday 13 November | 14:00 | Arabic / French / Italian / Mandarin / Modern Greek / Serbian / Spanish SAL P2 (2 hrs); Latin SAL P2 (2 hrs); Portuguese HL P2 (2½ hrs), FAL / SAL P2 (2 hrs); Equine Studies (3 hrs) |
Week 6: 16 to 20 November
Life Sciences Paper 2 opens Monday, followed by English and History later in the week. This is the last full week of major papers for most NSC candidates.
| Date | Time | Subject |
|---|---|---|
| Monday 16 November | 09:00 | Life Sciences P2 (2½ hrs) |
| Monday 16 November | 14:00 | Dramatic Arts (3 hrs); Civil Technology (3 hrs) |
| Tuesday 17 November | 09:00 | Sepedi / Sesotho / Setswana / Xitsonga / Tshivenda HL P2 (2½ hrs), FAL P2 (2½ hrs), SAL P2 (1½ hrs); South African Sign Language HL P2 (2½ hrs) |
| Tuesday 17 November | 14:00 | Agricultural Sciences P2 (2½ hrs); Nautical Science P2 (3 hrs) |
| Wednesday 18 November | 09:00 | Business Studies P2 (2 hrs) |
| Wednesday 18 November | 14:00 | Visual Arts P1 (3 hrs) |
| Thursday 19 November | 09:00 | English HL P2 (2½ hrs); English FAL P2 (2½ hrs); English SAL P2 (1½ hrs) |
| Thursday 19 November | 14:00 | History P2 (3 hrs) |
| Friday 20 November | 09:00 | Afrikaans HL P2 (2½ hrs); Afrikaans FAL P2 (2½ hrs); Afrikaans SAL P2 (1½ hrs) |
| Friday 20 November | 14:00 | Economics P2 (2 hrs) |
Final Week: 23 to 26 November
The last four days are mostly specialist and smaller-enrolment subjects, along with the CAT and IT P1 rewrites on Thursday 26 November.
| Date | Time | Subject |
|---|---|---|
| Monday 23 November | 09:00 | Agricultural Technology (3 hrs) |
| Monday 23 November | 14:00 | Music P1 Theory (3 hrs) |
| Tuesday 24 November | 09:00 | Agricultural Management Practices (3 hrs); Marine Sciences P2 (2½ hrs) |
| Tuesday 24 November | 14:00 | Dance Studies (3 hrs) |
| Wednesday 25 November | 09:00 | Music P2 Comprehension (1½ hrs) |
| Thursday 26 November | 09:00 | CAT P1 Rewrite Practical (3 hrs); IT P1 Rewrite Practical (3 hrs) |
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